Mops are very prevalent and have been for many years. A mop with a string-type mop head in particular is well known. Such mops are used in the home to clean hard surface areas such as kitchen floors and bathroom floors. They are also extensively used in industrial and commercial buildings to clean floors.
Anyone who has used a string-type mop for even a short period of time can attest to the fact it causes a certain amount of hand and arm muscle fatigue. Blisters on the hands can also occur unless proper care is taken, e.g. wearing work gloves or mopping a small area. Professional maintenance people who may use the mop for long periods of time and for several days at a time are well aware of muscle strain and blister problems that are likely to occur. However, the conventional string-type mop which has been used for many years is a very effective cleaning implement. Its advantages far outweigh its disadvantages. As a result, it remains in use. Those who use it have accepted its disadvantages and have suffered through the muscle strain problem in particular.
There have been limited attempts to improve the conventional string-type mop. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,887,712 and 5,133,101 disclose two such attempts. The mop disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,887,712 utilize a rotary mop head attached to a mop handle. The mop head is free to rotate in use and is said to provide a better cleaning and polishing action. U.S. Pat. No. 5,133,101 also discloses an improved string-type mop, though its intent is specifically to facilitate manipulation of the mop head without causing muscle strain or injury to the user. An auxiliary set of struts or hand grips extend from a mid-portion of the mop's handle. It is said that a lateral spacing of the struts from the mop handle provides a moment arm which facilitates rotation of the mop head. The struts have coverings which are free to rotate. This is turn prevents abrasion and callousing of the user's hands. While apparently effective to a certain degree, it is also apparent that the auxiliary set of struts adds significantly to the cost of the mop. Additionally, muscle strain of a hand needed for an end of the mop handle is still present.
There remains a need for an improved string-type mop which is easy to use with due regard for the user's physical health. The mop must be economical to produce and most importantly must be able to reduce known muscle strain inherent with present string-type mops. In accord with this need, there has now been developed an improved mop handle and mop which result in less muscle strain to the user.